Jaguars, Pride clash headlines pivotal fourth round

Wed, Dec 7, '16

WICB Press Release:
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – One of Caribbean sport’s longest-running rivalries will again grab the headlines, when Guyana Jaguars and Barbados Pride meet in the feature match of the fourth round in the Digicel Regional 4-Day Tournament, starting on Friday.

Action resumes in the R4Day following the one-week, early-season break – and the top-of-the-table clash between the two sides that inaugurated first-class matches in the Caribbean more than 150 years ago, again takes centre-stage.

In addition to the key match, this round gets going tomorrow, when Jamaica Scorpions host Trinidad & Tobago Red Force at Sabina Park in another crucial contest – and the following day, Windward Islands Volcanoes and Leeward Islands Hurricanes meet in another bitter rivalry game at Windsor Park.

With a 6.6-point spread dividing the top five teams in the R4Day, a victory and a huge collection of bonus points will be critical, as the teams try to separate themselves as they count down to the break following the next round of matches to accommodate the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, plus the Regional Super50 Tournament.

In Providence, Guyana: A battle-royale is expected between the Jaguars and Pride, two teams that have set the pace in the R4Day over the last two seasons and are currently sitting on top of the standings with just 0.2 points standing between them.

Both teams suffered setbacks in the previous round when it looked like they could have been in pole position for victory. Their chances were badly affected by rain which led to draws in all of the matches during the round.

The Jaguars – on home soil – are always a challenging prospect for visiting teams, but the Pride have been one of the few that can look past conditions and put their hosts on the back-foot.

The two teams have met five times at this venue since it has become the main arena for major regional and international matches in the country and the Pride have equipped themselves well with two wins, including one of the most narrow in the history of the R4Day two seasons back.

The Jaguars have a settled squad and are likely to enter the match with three front-line spinners, hoping to take advantage of a typically low and slow pitch – off-spinner Eon Hooper, a cousin of former Guyana and West Indies captain Carl Hooper, has been brought back into the unit in place of fast bowler Romario Shepherd.

But the Pride have been significantly boosted, particularly in the batting department, with the return of five regulars inter alia from the West Indies Tours of the United Arab Emirates and Zimbabwe. They are: captain Kraigg Brathwaite, left-hander Jonathan Carter, wicketkeeper/batsman Shane Dowrich, middle-order batsman Shai Hope and off-spin bowling all-rounder Ashley Nurse.

To this end, the match could ultimately be decided upon how well the powerful Pride batting handles the varied Jaguars attack which also comprises the fast-medium bowling of Keon Joseph and left-armer Raymon Reifer, no stranger to the Pride, as well as the medium-fast bowling of Christopher Barnwell.

In Kingston, Jamaica: Another topsy-turvy clash is expected between the Scorpions and the Red Force, two teams that have promised much, but are striving for greater consistency, especially from their batting.

The Scorpions gained a slice of good fortune when the weather disrupted their contest against the Pride in the previous round, at the same time that the Red Force gained valuable batting practice only on home soil against the Hurricanes.

Just 1.6 points separate the two teams in the tightly-bunched table, but they have already suffered stumbles this season, due to weak batting which led the Scorpions to lose against the Jaguars and Red Force to lose against the Pride.

Oddly enough however, both teams in the last three seasons have found it easier to win against each other when they are playing on the road, so that recent history favours the Red Force this weekend with them having won the last three matches the two sides have contested at this venue.

The Scorpions’ have brought in last year’s captain Paul Palmer and West Indies all-rounder Rovman Powell in a bid to fortify their batting, which it appears the return of Jason Mohammed from the West Indies One-day Tour of Zimbabwe has done for the Red Force.

Both sides are well served in the bowling – with this being a special match for Jamaica-born West Indies left-arm fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell, playing on home soil for the first time since his transfer to Port of Spain – so the batsmen will definitely have to play their part in grabbing victory.

In Roseau, Dominica: The Volcanoes and Hurricanes, two teams seemingly heading in different directions, will be looking to take advantage of each other in the all-Islands clash.

The Volcanoes seemed to have been fortunate to have escaped with a draw against the Jaguars in the previous round thanks to the weather which also prevented the Hurricanes from a chance to build on their strong start to the season, including a record-breaking victory against the defending champions.

The Volcanoes, a side which in previous seasons had toppled some of the giants in the regional game, have endured a rocky start to the season and now occupy the bottom place in the table, where the Hurricanes had been for much of the last few seasons.

This match between two sides that had once teamed up to take on the rest of the region is a chance for the Volcanoes to get their season on track and for the Hurricanes to give further proof that they have begun to make strides in redressing the balance of power.

When the two sides met last year at this venue, the contest was marred by questions about the quality of the pitch, after the Hurricanes declared their first innings on 24 for seven and went on to suffer an eight-wicket defeat.

In the return match in the United States Virgin Islands territory of St. Thomas however, the Hurricanes gave a much better showing in a drawn contest and broke a sequence of five straight losses to the Volcanoes and will look to obliterate that statistic around and begin a winning streak of their own.

The Volcanoes welcome back West Indies opener Johnson Charles from the Tour of Zimbabwe and have added Tarryck Gabriel in a bid to strengthen their inconsistent batting, and the return to action of West Indies fast bowler Alzarri Joseph – following personal leave to attend to his ailing mother – will have the Hurricanes cock-a-hoop.

Bowling is the strength of both teams with both well served on the fast and spin bowling front, so batting will be the key to which side grab’s the lion share of points.